For palates used to third-wave coffee in Sydney and Melbourne – with the emphasis on roasting light to bring out the fruity and acidic flavours of specialty-grade beans – bitter is certainly the word on a coffee pilgrimage to Italy, the spiritual home of espresso.

The roasts are darker, and the coffee sometimes a blend of arabica and robusta beans (especially in the south), with the resulting brews quite bitter, even in comparison to Italian-style roasts in Australia, which now use almost exclusively arabica beans.

Italians consume over 70 million cups of coffee per day in 200,000 coffee bars. In Italy, you’ll find a coffee bar in just about every city neighborhood and in every village. Coffee bars are known as a place to get together and discuss topics such as soccer and politics, play cards, and just people-watch.

Of all the types of coffee Italians drink, espresso is the most popular. While many will rely on a professional barrista to create the perfect cup, thanks to manufacturers like Bialetti, Italians and and many Italian-Americans can enjoy their own cup of espresso at home.

And did you know that the idea for the home-based, stove-top espresso maker actually came from a washing machine?

During the 1920s, Alfonso Bialetti, the owner of a small workshop manufacturing metal household goods, watched as women from his hometown in Crusinallo washed clothes in a sealed boiler with a small central pipe. This pipe would draw up the soapy water from the bottom of the boiler and spread it out over the laundry. Bialetti wondered if he could model an espresso-type of coffee maker after this very same concept.[Read more…]